see also

Tesla owners who have been dreaming of putting their cars in self-driving mode — and collecting some Uber fares while they sleep — are getting a rude awakening.

Tesla will not let owners drive for Uber when their car is in self-driving mode, according to language on the company’s design page.

“Using a self-driving Tesla for car sharing and ride hailing for friends and family is fine,” it said, “but doing so for revenue purposes will only be permissible on the Tesla Network, details of which will be released next year.”

That Tesla will be rolling out an Uber-like ride sharing service in 2017 may have been news to many owners.

Although Tesla didn’t elaborate, the disclaimer suggests owners of its electric vehicles will still be able to drive for Uber or Lyft when their car is not in self-driving mode.

The Uber ban is a stark reminder that the self-driving technology is owned by Tesla and is simply used by drivers and that the company may look to put limits on the use of its technology.

That means when a person buys a Model S he is agreeing to certain terms and limits, according to Extreme Tech, which reported the Uber ban on Friday.

Tesla didn’t offer details on how it will enforce the ban, although experts expect a few policing problems given the amount of data exchanged between its cars and the company’s master motherboard.

Tesla also announced that its new models have all the hardware necessary for autonomous driving and that the software will be beamed into the vehicles on receiving regulatory approval.

“You will also be able to add your car to the Tesla shared fleet just by tapping a button on the Tesla phone app and have it generate income for you while you’re at work or on vacation,” founder Elon Musk wrote last July.